Trial of former probation state chief from Quincy set for May 5

Wednesday

Apr 23, 2014 at 2:57 AMApr 23, 2014 at 3:01 AM

The trial of former state Probation Commissioner John J. O'Brien of Quincy will start in federal court May 5. O'Brien, who had a pretrial hearing in Boston on Tuesday, faces racketeering and bribery charges stemming from allegations that he oversaw a rigged hiring system.

Patrick Ronan The Patriot Ledger @pronan_Ledger

BOSTON – The trial of former state Probation Commissioner John J. O’Brien of Quincy will start in federal court May 5.

O’Brien, who had a pretrial hearing in Boston on Tuesday, faces racketeering and bribery charges stemming from allegations that he oversaw a rigged hiring system in which the politically connected were hired over more qualified candidates. O’Brien was the state probation commissioner from 1998 to 2010.

In March 2012, O’Brien and two of his former probation department deputies, Elizabeth Tavares of Newton and William Burke III of Hatfield, were indicted in federal court for allegedly running a sham hiring system in which friends and family members of some legislators and other politically connected job seekers were hired instead of more qualified applicants.

All three pleaded innocent to various counts of racketeering, bribery and mail fraud charges, and they were released on bail.

The upcoming trial features lawyers who have litigated high-profile cases in recent years. Assistant U.S. Attorney Fred Wyshak won convictions against notorious mobster James “Whitey” Bulger last year, and William Fick, one of O’Brien’s attorneys, is part of the defense team representing accused Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.

During Tuesday’s hearing, Judge William Young ordered the state’s Supreme Judicial Court to turn over to O’Brien’s defense team monthly memos about the probation department’s hiring practices after O’Brien was placed on leave in May 2010, the State House News Service reported.

O’Brien’s attorneys argued that hiring records will show that the state had a practice of hiring “provisional” employees even after O’Brien’s departure, evidence that undercuts the prosecution’s case.

Young scheduled another pretrial hearing for May 1.

Last April, O’Brien was indicted on a second batch of federal charges stemming from allegations that he bribed 21 legislators, including Senate President Therese Murray of Plymouth and House Speaker Robert DeLeo of Winthrop. No legislators were charged in the indictment.

Earlier this month, Judge Young granted a motion to separate the trial into two, putting off the second wave of bribery counts for a second trial.

Before his second indictment last spring, O’Brien was acquitted of public corruption charges in state court. A Suffolk County jury rendered a non-guilty verdict in favor of O’Brien, who was accused of organizing a 2005 fundraiser for former state Treasurer Timothy Cahill in exchange for O'Brien’s wife getting a job at the state Lottery.

O’Brien’s acquittal was one of several unsuccessful attempts by Attorney General Martha Coakley to secure convictions against officials from Quincy. In 2012, Cahill and his former aides, Scott Campbell and Alfred Grazioso, all from Quincy, were indicted in connection with a $1.5 million Lottery ad campaign prosecutors said benefited Cahill’s 2010 bid for governor more than it did the Lottery.

Cahill’s case resulted in a mistrial, and he agreed to pay a $100,000 penalty to prevent a retrial. Grazioso paid $10,000 to cover court costs in exchange for Coakley dropping obstruction charges against him.

Campbell was acquitted in the Cahill case, and charges against him in the O’Brien state case were dropped.